Marauders
by UnrequitedLike
Summary: A different look into the time of the four boys known as the Marauders and the people that surround them; Lily, Snape, and even Tonks. They had their own story before Harry Potter. 'Marauders' is a tale of friendship, betrayal, mystery, and love.
1. Prologue

_Tonks_

It was dark. I remember that so clearly. It was an almost unnatural kind of darkness. The kind that seems to swallow everything in sight, that keeps us all within the compact place that was our

world however frightening at the time. This blackness that seemed to sweep down and scoop all contents into its unfeeling arms to the point where it frightened so many of our ancestors before

us. And now?

I could barely believe that a few months ago I had to sat up in my dormitory only to look up at the stars in contentment, harbored by this same sky that was looming above me as a

sick joke. Mocking me almost. _If you ever doubted my power before, pay close attention now, _It seemed to say.

How had this come to be? The fact that I was even involved in this mess seemed proof positive that my luck, if it existed, should be called into question. It just seemed to ironic (of all things!) for

me to end up outside on this night. This one night where no one was safe but nobody knew.

I swallowed, the sound of blood thumping in my ears a sick reminder of....Oh god no. I whipped my head around looking back up at the castle looming above me no matter how far away it was. It

seemed to block my view of the sky completely. Turning back to where the forest stretched over the ever expanding grounds; trees black as ebony, their feathery looking branches reaching for

the pitch dark ceiling above them.

I shook my head trying to focus. Focus. Find him and then run. The moment I raised my foot to take a step the sound split into the air like it had been waiting for me to make a move, to make

that final decision before announcing what was going to happen next. A wolf...howling. Not just any wolf.

I felt my chest rise and fall with every shallow breath I took and I could have sworn I heard my heart speed up with just my ears. "No--" I choked out, my voice sounding wrong. It sounded like it

didn't belong to me. It sounded so familiar like--....A twig snapped somewhere in the distance and I turned my body towards the castle immediately when a flock of birds flew off into the distance

away from whatever had caused the disturbance.

Suddenly, I came to my senses and realized I was mad, _mad _for trying to save the night. I was no hero and I had no business being here. But I could not, would not let my cousin down. I turned

and ran head first into the thick arms of the trees. I fought through branches scratching at my hands, arms and my face, stumbling into this black dwelling. I cried out as I felt a particularly sharp

branch scrape my skin mercilessly but I kept moving.

The moment I was free I tore through the brush running like I only had maybe twice in my life. I debated if I should call out for him but knew it was not wise for the current situation and in any

case, why would he listen to me?

I ran further still and hopped over a fallen stump before it took me down. It was almost a miracle; that is until the toe of my sneaker caught a tree root sending me sprawling on my stomach into

the dirt. My faux-grace couldn't have even lasted longer than two seconds. I stifled a cry as I felt the muscles in my foot pull in a way I knew was not natural. Pain shot through and then the

numbness came. I hesitantly placed my foot down to see if I could stand but another shot of pain halted my attempt.

It was silent then except for the stir of wind and my own panting as my chest heaved. I turned on my back to face the navy sky barely visible through the thicket of woods. My eyes met with the

one thing I didn't wish to see because it confirmed my fears in every way possible: the full moon hung low, seemingly touching the top of the forest, its bright light the only thing clearly visible at

this point.

A rustle caught my attention as a clump of bushes stirred much more loudly than they should have. The sound seemed close, much too close for my comfort. In fact I was sure that whatever

was out here had been alerted to my presence when I had tumbled to the ground. The wind had died down.

My gaze wandered back to that cursed orb called The Moon and was the last thing I saw before my lids closed. I squeezed my eyes shut willing this all to disappear. I was a witch, I had the ability

to do such things, did I not? Lily could have in the situation, I thought wryly to myself. How I had the ability to joke with myself in the situation was beyond me. Why I would want to joke with

myself at all was further beyond me. Oh god, I was going insane, finally after all these years.

Without the scene around me to remind me of where I was, I let my thoughts wander back to where this all could have possibly started. Or before it did. The sounds I had heard before seem to

be muted, and I thought back to eight months prior when I had known nothing.


	2. Homecoming

Hello faithful readers :] UnrequitedLike here. I forgot to address you before, forgive me. I realize that the prologue is a bit confusing however, don't worry. Everything will make sense in time. To explain a bit I'm naming each of my chapters after a song that I listened to while writing it. This one is Homecoming by Hey Monday. Hope you enjoy!

_Homecoming, I'm coming_

_ My sweet mistake_

_ Summer's over, hope it's not too late_

_**Sirius**_

_**8 months prior**_

Ah September first. How I used to long for this date when I was still considered a member of the "Oh-So-Bloody-Noble House of Black". Well, that wasn't true. I really hadn't been since I was sorted into the hated Gryffindor and Regulus into the adored Slytherin. Excuse me while I dry heave? Okay that wasn't true either; I hadn't truly been a member since...ever. However, all was well because I was now a resident of the Potter house. Nothing dry-heave worthy there.

A year previous, I had had enough when I had participated in a rather _violent _discussion with my dear brother over what exactly was considered quote thee "pure" (unquote thee). And then my mother became involved. Oh joy. I could still remember it clear as ice.

_I stood, my lip stung with the fresh assault courtesy of Regulus' fist. I bit the bottom and tasted iron. My blood. I touched my fingers to my mouth and brought it forward, looking down at the glistening red. I began to laugh, my shoulders shaking. My brother Regulus, stood across the dark room watching me with both hate and uncertainty. He hadn't been expecting this reaction. "Wow, congratulations Regulus. I didn't think you had it in you," I said, my tone taunting. Maybe he wasn't as spineless as I'd---nahhh._

_"You wanted 'pure' blood?" I asked, mocking him. I flicked the scarlet drops right in his face. "There you go."_

_What happened next is what I would like to call What Happened Next. It involved my so called brother throwing himself at me where he therefore went on to punch, smack, and kick every part of me he came in contact with. He may not have been as experienced as I was in Muggle Fighting but he was doing fairly well. I was spitting blood out from between my teeth and Regulus' nose was bleeding heavily over the antique carpet. He reached for his wand in his pocket but I was quicker._

_The minute I had it drawn I heard a voice cry "Expelliarmus!" and felt my wand pulled out of my own hand and thrown across the room. I swung around only to be face to face with my godforsaken mother. Her eyes stared at me wildly as usual, her grey streaked hair in a huge bun on top of her head, with a few strands hanging out in different spots. She looked pretty crazy, but it was a fair representation of her personality._

_"WHAT do you think you are DOING? You are lucky to be living under this roof still, you Mudblood-loving filthy traitor who takes no pride in his last name! You DARE to attack the TRUE Black son in this household?" She screeched and tugged at her hair in anger as I saw our house elf Kreacher peering from behind her and up at me. I grimaced down at him as he grinned a rather nasty smile. Little bugger. If I had a galleon for every time I had wanted to kick him..._

_A finger jutted in front of me, inches from my aching nose. "LEAVE! NOW! I WILL NOT TOLERATE FURTHER DISGRACE!" The words echoed in my ears as both hatred and relief spread like fire throughout me._

_"Fine. I can't believe it's taken you this long, to be honest." Without another word I had run to the staircase and bounded upstairs, two at a time. My things were still packed from leaving school and all I had to do was grab them. I would be free at last, away from this excuse of a home. I grabbed my trunk and proceeded downstairs as fast as my legs allowed._

_Regulus was still standing in the same spot he had been before, his hand now pressed over his face in a feeble attempt to keep the blood from spewing further over the precious carpet. I gave them all one last look of contempt before swinging open the door and stepping into the brisk air. Cool wind rushed over my face, like an invitation to stay out and away from my family._

_"Go to hell," were my last words to them before the door slammed shut and darkness covered my entire figure._

_I remember walking. A lot of walking. Down the same pitch black street with the occasional flickering lamppost light, dragging my trunk behind me. I was utterly alone. I didn't even have a bloody pet to keep me company on this journey. I grinned as I realized I pretty much was my own pet, being an animagus but I couldn't exactly carry my trunk in my mouth._

_I had considered where I could stay until the remainder of my days at Hogwarts; I only had two years left. Andromeda, my older cousin was my first thought. She was more like a mother to me than Walburga had ever been. She lived in a secluded suburb of London; a muggle area. Her daughter, Nymphadora'Tonks, was a year behind me and had become a really close friend of mine in the past few years. I felt comforted by the mere idea of staying with the Tonks', they were an ideal family to me despite how often Tonks said she argued with her mother._

_I sighed, knowing they would take me in but...I would feel guilty imposing. Plus they really only had space for the three of them. Their house was actually pretty large but it consisted of only two bedrooms, as I recalled from my last visit and I knew there would be no way I could share with Tonks. She was a fifteen year old girl! Talk about awkward. I didn't want to see anything I wasn't meant to._

_Another thought came to my mind as I remembered James offering a place at his when I had gone off on a tangent about my usual problems with my parents and brother. "Just come crash at my place mate. My parents practically want to adopt you already; might as well make it permanent." I could practically hear his voice and see him grinning excitedly at the prospect of us continuing our mischief into the summer..._

_Without a second thought I flung out my right arm right in the middle of the road and then jumped out of the way as a double decker bus came speeding towards me from a distance. The Knight Bus screeched to a stop once it had reached me and a blonde haired guy not much older than myself stepped out onto the concrete. "Welcome to the Knight--" he began._

_"Yeah yeah pal I know," I said quickly patting him on the shoulder and boarding. I tossed my trunk on a seat near the front and settled comfortably down. I took a deep breath, feeling relaxed at last._

_"Where to?" asked the blonde guy, a bit indignant that I had cut off his speech. He must have been new._

_"The Potters Residence....please," I added with a sly grin. The bus gave a sharp jerk and we were off, speeding into the dark and towards my safe haven._

"Sirius....hey, Sirius!" A voice jerked me out of my reverie and I turned to see my best mate, James Potter standing in front of me grinning broadly. "Done zoning out or should I give you a few more minutes?" He lifted a hand and ran it through his already messy jet black hair, disheveling it even more. He was getting pretty tall; almost as tall as Remus. Out my four friends: Remus, James, Peter and myself, we were all about the same height except for Peter. Poor Pete. I think even Tonks had a good 3 inches on him.

"Nah, I'm good now," I said heaving my trunk back up. We were standing right next to the barrier of 9 and 3/4 separating our station from the muggle one at King's Cross. The Hogwarts Express was stationed right in front of us, billowing smoke every few minutes. Students all around us were hugging and catching up with one another after a long summer of being apart. I watched them all, keeping an eye out for the other half of our group: Moony and Wormtail. I knew it would be easy to spot Remus, he towered above the majority of the school. Plus he would be wearing his prefect robes; it was required so he could direct the first years.

I barked a laugh as I was reminded and turned back to James. "So have you told anyone yet, Head Boy?" I knew his badge was packed somewhere in his belongings. He had received it over the summer, much to the surprise of oh, I don't know..._everyone._

His eyes met mine and he let out a chuckle, shaking his head. "Nope, no one yet. I'm waiting for the opportune moment." I saw him press his lips together, searching the crowd intently and suddenly it made sense.

"You're waiting to tell Lily first, aren't you?" Typical. All his glory depended on Lily's reaction to it.

He laughed again, but this time it sounded guilty. "Alright maybe. I just want to be the one to tell her instead of....Oh I don't know, Catherine Turpin," he said, naming a friend of Lily's and somewhat gossip. "Maybe she'll finally see me as a responsible individual. I mean, I know we were getting better last year. She didn't hate me anymore," he explained as we both walked among the crowds of friends forming in clusters around us.

"Probably because you didn't torture old Snivelly quite as much. Whoa-whoa!" I stopped dead in my tracks and grabbed for James' shoulder, shaking it once I had found it.

He glanced at me sideways, curious. "What is it?"

My gaze was locked on a girl standing a few yards in front of us. She must've been new; I knew I hadn't seen her before. I had gotten pretty friendly with practically _all_ the girls at our school and I did not recognize this one. She had short, brown hair and stood wearing Muggle attire of jeans and a grey sweater complete with...Ugh, what were those Muggle shoes called? Tonks knew, she owned a pair. Chad Taylors, were they? No, no.....Chuck! That's what they were: Chuck Taylors! Maybe she was just a confused Muggle who had accidentally wandered onto the platform. If that was the case, I would be more than happy to assist with pointing her in the right direction.

James was staring at me as if I had gone mental. "Sirius?--" his eyes followed mine and landed on the mystery girl in front of us. "Oh," he said and then shook his head. "Welcome back to school Paddy," and he whacked me on the back. I was too busy eyeing the girl still. Making up my mind, I decided to approach her. After all, Remus and Peter really couldn't take much longer.

As I walked up to the girl she hoisted her bag over one shoulder and in that moment she seemed _extremely_ familiar. I had slowed my pace a bit with this slightly disturbing feeling in my stomach, just as she turned around to face me full on.

"Bloody!--" right when I was about to utter a word most consider distasteful, the Hogwarts Express blew its horn to signal everyone to board.

Standing before me was my _cousin_ the one and only Nymphadora Tonks. I was frozen. I literally could not move from where I stood; My mouth was gaping open and my eyes were locked on her.

She looked the same pretty much, except for her hair. The previous years at school, she had worn it as it naturally was: long, straight and as black as mine. Now however it was much shorter, touching her shoulders and she had bangs that swept across her forehead. The color was currently light brown, just like her mother's. In fact she resembled an alternative and younger version of Andromeda. Her eyes were also bright blue whereas they had been chocolate brown before.

She grinned, amused at the expression on my face and leaned her weight to one side. "So I guess that means you like it?"

I managed to compose myself somewhat, closing my mouth and standing up straighter. "Well I....I mean, you've...changed! A lot!"

She laughed and I relaxed a bit more; She was still the same Tonks besides the hair and the eyes. Her laugh sounded refreshingly familiar. "Well yeah, don't you remember? Mum said I was only allowed to change my appearance to suit me when I turned 16 unless I was in danger and had to be in disguise." She rolled her eyes at that one. I knew she thought her mother worried entirely too much. "I can't believe you don't remember, I've only been talking about it since I was 11." She smiled easily, but I knew what thoughts lay behind that smile.

It was true that naturally Tonks seemed to resemble her aunt Bellatrix Lestrange quite a bit, not unlike her mother. The dark hair and dark eyes gave her away to be related to the Blacks and I knew she was sensitive about it given the fact that they all had hated her for simply existing.

She cleared her throat looking at me expectantly and suddenly a huge smile spread across my face. "Wait until the guys see this!" I exclaimed turning to find James and possibly the others. I felt her hand clamp my arm pretty strongly and I looked back at her. "No!" she said smiling still but she looked almost anxious. "Why, what's the problem? I mean, you look...good!" I wasn't about to say that had she been anyone but herself I probably would have hit on her. I would keep that to myself.

"I just...I don't know. Can't we just get on the train?" she pleaded.

"I've gotta find the guys first. I'll meet you on there," I told her just as James came up to both of us. He stopped by me, glanced and Tonks and then did a double take.

"Whoa! What--How did you?-- Tonks, look at you!" He said his eyes practically bulging as I'm sure mine had been.

She smiled somewhat wryly, embarrassed only a little. "Yeah...I know."

His grin became larger until he laughed loudly and exclaimed "Boy I can't wait to see the look on Remus' face when--"

"--Okay let's go find the others," I said cutting off James before he said too much, even though I had pretty much been thinking the same exact thing. "Come with us Tonks, I can't wait to show you off. Let's count how many people don't recognize you on the way to the compartment." I looped my arm in hers and marched next to James towards the scarlet train. "It'll be fun; like a new game!"

People were turning to look at the three of us, although if I had to be honest it was probably also due to the fact that James and I were back.

"Hey, wait I was waiting for someone!" She protested as we dragged her off.

"Who, a boy?" I snorted. Tonks never had crushes; she was too cool for those. If I was honest, I despised the giggling-whispering-following-around routine that the majority of girls I was around partook in. It was just a tiny bit obvious; although I had to admit it had helped me a few times to find a date for Hogsmeade. I guess you could say girl-wise, I had had more quantity than quality.

Tonks snorted right back at me and furrowed her brow. "What? No! I was waiting for Eleanor." Eleanor Owens was Tonks' best and only girl friend. She was in Ravenclaw, but basically hung around us a lot. She was really pretty, I mean for a 6th year. But she was a little quiet for my taste.

I tugged on her elbow impatiently. "You can find her on the train. Who knows, she might already be on there." I took her wrist and pulled her through the crowd which had gotten much bigger in the past five minutes. "We need to board!" James tagged alongside me as we made it to the train and climbed up the steps heavily.

It was even more congested on the train itself as all the students tried to find a compartment with their friends. We were stopped behind the gathering crowd of people and I let out an impatient huff. "Come on people, let's not wait for the grass to grow," James said as we slowly but surely inched our way up the aisle.

A familiar deep voice up ahead caught my interest as it said "Yes, just find a seat and we'll be moving momentarily." I looked up to see Remus standing right next to a compartment door ushering first years down the aisle. I could have sworn he had grown at least an inch more and was clad in his (who called it?) prefect robes. His brown hair had grown too, hanging in his eyes. As if he could sense I had spotted him, he turned his head and caught sight of myself and James. He smiled slightly and tried to make his way towards us, although he too was halted by the myriad of shrimpy first and second years.

"Hey Moony, long time no pranks," I said with a broad grin and patted him hard on the shoulder. James came to stand next to him and did the same crying out "Moony! Where have you been all my life?"

He smiled crookedly and stuck his hands in the pockets of his robes. "Took you long enough to board. What happened, did Sirius meet a new girl? Transfer student from Beauxbatons perhaps?"

James snickered. "Close!" I elbowed him hard in the ribs.

Remus looked from my expression to James massaging his side. "What are you talking about?"

I grinned mischievously and turned around to find my cousin. I spied her chatting with a few 6th year Gryffindors a few feet away. I grabbed her arm and pulled over to where we all stood. "Check out who it is," I couldn't wait to see his reaction. I had high hopes for these two but I would never tell either of them that. Remus was so bloody shy when it came to girls blaming it on his furry little problem but I knew that wasn't the case. It was just how he was. And Tonks...well, I suspected she had harbored a softness for our Moony for quite some time. She hid it well though, I had to admit.

Remus glanced at Tonks, his face neutral. It took a moment for it to sink in and when it did, I fought to keep from laughing out loud. His blue eyes widened and I even think I saw him turn a shade redder but it was hard to tell.

"Hey Remus," she said casually looking up at him.

He blinked a few more times and then composed his facial expression to a more natural one. "Hi Tonks. Good to see you, How was your summer?" he sounded completely normal. _Smooth recovery, _I thought to myself. I walked away chuckling and shaking my head.

"Come on, let's sit!" I called with a wave of my hand beckoning everyone to follow. "Hey, where's Wormtail?" He was the last one to join our little coven.

"Oh he was around here somewhere. Said something about forgetting to bring his luggage on board." Remus shrugged in a helpless manner.

I barked a laugh. "Already? The year hasn't even started and he forgot something!" I entered an empty compartment and collapsed in a heap on the red velvet seats, swinging my hands to rest behind my head and kicking up my feet.

"Leave some room for the rest of us Padfoot," said Remus as he followed me into the area; Tonks after him. She turned over her shoulder and I saw her grin.

"Uh-oh. Looks like James has spotted Lily," she turned and smiled knowingly at us.

"Yeah," I said easily, "Probably going to corner her and shine his Head Boy badge in her eyes."

"What?!" Remus and Tonks cried at the same time and then looked at one another.

"Yeah, Prongsie made Head Boy. You should have seen him. Kept swearing Dumbledore had mixed him up with you Moony," I said nodding towards him.

Tonks shrugged. "Well I mean that's possible. But James has had accomplishments, I mean he's quidditch captain for Gryffindor--" I cut her off.

"---Yeah along with top prankster and troublemaker in the school." I replied.

"Touche'," She said plopping down in a seat across from me.

"Wow Padfoot, are you actually admitting that Prongs is more of a troublemaker than you are? Never thought I'd see the day," Remus yawned and glanced out the window.

"I'm the instigator of our operations," I grinned and winked at them both.

"No arguments there," Tonks said without missing a beat. If we were to ever induct in a 5th Marauder, she'd be it. No questions asked. But for now we had kept our morphing abilities a secret along with Moony's 'personal business'. She just assumed our nicknames were some weird boy thing we came up with, as did Lily. At the end of last year I had confronted the others and asked if we should tell Tonks the truth. She hung around us a good amount of the time and it seemed only fair. But Moony had put the kibosh on it so she was still in the dark.

Just then James slid open the door with Peter in tow right next to him. "Look who I found," he said nodding to Peter who was lugging a rather large bag. "We barely made it back in time."

Sure enough we soon felt the engine of the train beginning to rev up. Tonks looked at James and spoke up, "So Mr. Head Boy, did you find Lily or what?"

James immediately looked to me and I held up my hands in defense. "Hey, it's not like they weren't going to find out! Besides, Tonks spotted you scoping out the premises for your lovebird."

Tonks shrugged. "It's true."

James looked slightly chagrined and nodded. "Yeah, I saw her. She took one look at the badge and screamed."

Remus looked over, interested. "Really?"

"No but she might has well have. You should have seen the shock on her face. I wasn't the only one expecting it to be you Moony." He laughed slightly but I could tell he was hurt a bit.

"Aw don't worry James, she'll get used to being around you 24/7 including patrols on the train, Hogsmeade and after hours," Tonks leaned back in her chair yawning a bit.

James immediately brightened up. "Yeah...Yeah! Well I gotta go change in my robes and address the other prefects. Moony, you coming?" Remus nodded. "Sure thing, I'll be right there." Without another word James left, no doubt in a hurry to see Lily.

I turned to Tonks impressed. "Nice job."

She laughed a little "What can I say? I know what he wants to hear." I grinned, and turned to stare out the window.

The train was in full motion now as we all sped off towards Hogwarts deep in the Scotland countryside. We passed rolling hills and empty valleys with nothing but a few trees here and there. I sighed in contentment and leaned further back against the smooth seat. I'd waited all summer to get back here, my home.

My seventh year was about to start, and things were already fairly interesting. Little did I know that it was all going to get more interesting with each passing day.


	3. We've Only Just Begun

Hey readers. I'd like to start off by saying thank you to Anna for consistently leaving reviews on each chapter (so far ;]) Reviews let me know if my story is being read and inspire me to continue at a faster pace. To be honest, I pretty much start a new chapter whenever I get a review. So if you want me to write more, you have to write more! I also take what you guys say to heart although sometimes I may have a plan in my mind that will later answer questions, so be patient. This chapter's title comes from the song We've Only Just Begun by Run Kid Run. It isn't my favorite, but the title gets the job done :]

_ Just let it take you where you want to go_

_   Just let it tell you what you want to know_

Lily

I took a seat without really meaning to do so. James Potter. James Potter was Head Boy. Not Remus Lupin, or even that Hufflepuff prefect Diggory. James wasn't even a prefect, he was quidditch captain. And while I had to admit it was a position of authority, it wasn't nearly in the same genre as being a prefect. Could James really handle enforcing the school rules when in reality he was the one who took great pleasure in breaking those same rules? I shook my head and returned to reality. I had always trusted Dumbledore's judgement; There was no reason I couldn't do the same now.

Catherine, a good friend of mine looked over the top of her magazine, her hazel eyes right over the title "Witch Weekly" which flashed a rather bright shade of turquoise. "Are you okay now?" she asked licking her index finger and flipping the page. I blinked once more and smiled, a little unsure.

"Yeah, yeah I'm great. Perfect in fact." I shot her a rather forced smile and settled comfortably in my seat. For about 5 seconds. "Oh my god, the meeting! I have to address everyone in the prefects carriage." I jumped up and smoothed down my robes. "I'll see you later Cath, alright?" She waved me on and I stepped into the aisle of the train.

I made my way towards the front of the train passing numerous compartments with people I recognized including (I grimaced) the Carrow twins sitting with Avery and Sirius' younger brother Regulus; I spotted Davey Gudgeon, that loud Hufflepuff boy talking animatedly to a girl I recognized to be Eleanor Owens, Tonks' friend. She looked rather uncomfortable although she gave him a polite smile.

I smiled to myself as I continued up the train coming to stop as a door swung open in the compartment behind me. I turned only to see James stepping out and begin to make his way to right where I stood. His eyes were averted to the floor until he came with a few feet of me. He looked up quickly and his eyes widened. "Hey Lily," he smiled and stuck his hands in the pockets of his pants. "I was...er...just heading to the prefect carriage. Want to walk with me?"

I looked at him somewhat skeptical, caught off guard by his politeness. Why did he seem nervous? James wasn't ever the least bit nervous and it threw me off slightly. "Um, well actually I..." I glanced around desperate for an excuse. I really needed some time away from James after the little shock of the day. However, it didn't seem likely now that we were both Heads. "I'll uh, meet you there in 5 minutes...I have to go meet someone." I had no idea who exactly it was I was meeting but I knew I would find someone...eventually.

Just then I heard the door slide open again and I looked over only to see Sirius Black and Tonks peering out from the compartment. Sirius looked the same as he had last year pretty much, but Tonks had changed her hair. She looked older, shooting me a wide grin as I looked at her. I smiled back and said quickly to them all, "Well I must be off, see you later!" I turned only to feel someone grab hold of my wrist.

"Hey, hey not so fast Evans! You just got here," Sirius smiled that stupid grin as I looked back, my eyebrows raised. "How was your summer?"

"Fine," I replied shortly.

It had not been fine. Despite the good news of my being made Head Girl, home life which had once been so joyous got worse with each passing summer. My sister Tuney....that is, Petunia, had once simply sulked and shot me looks from across the table. Now she had become a full-fledged monster ridiculing me every time we were alone under her breath. I hated that. I would almost prefer it if she called me a freak to my face, loud and clear. At least that was honest and braver in a way. She had once been my best friend, but over the years competition had won out. I could not think about that too much though-It was hard enough living it, let alone thinking about it.

I must have looked upset because James was eyeing me worriedly. "Are you... okay?"

I waved him off. "Yeah, I'm great! Well, I'll see you guys at Hogwarts. I have things... to do," I turned my back on them and walked briskly up to the front until I could no longer hear their voices behind me quite as much. I passed another compartment just as someone was exiting it...resulting in us bumping together.

"Oof," we both said stumbling into the walls that were shaking with the speed of the train. I regained my balance fairly quickly and looked over to see Severus Snape clutching the handle of the door for support.

"Sev!" I cried and smiled. I reached over to hug him and pulled away quickly to look at him. "How are you? I've missed you!" He was one of my closest friends and although we lived pretty close to one another, I hadn't seen him at all. I suspected he had been holed up in his room not unlike myself. We both had...family issues.

He smiled in a way that I only really saw when I was with him. Whenever I spotted him by himself or with fellow Slytherins he looked unhappy or menacing even. His eyes came to rest on the Head Girl badge pinned to the front of my robes. "Congratulations Lily," he said in his low voice, "Although Dumbledore had to make you Head Girl, no one else would have been nearly as qualified."

I beamed at him. "Oh well, thanks. I certainly was excited." Sev picked up on the key word.

"Was?" he asked slowly. My smiled faltered slightly and again I felt that inexplicable nervousness.

I licked my lips and glanced around distracted. "Dumbledore..made James Head Boy." I didn't dare look at Severus.

It was eerily quiet except for the sounds of the train and people talking, their voices muted behind closed doors. I stole a glance back at Severus who had gone very white and seemed to be clenching his jaw. I eyed him closely. "What. Is Dumbledore. _Thinking." _he snarled more to himself than to me. He began pacing and looked out the window, landscape flashing by. "Does he really expect Potter to be fair in his judgement? We all know he's going to let Sirius off the hook every time that git does something against the rules." He was glaring out at the scenery as if expecting it to speak back in defense of James.

I shrugged in a helpless manner. "Maybe...but Dumbledore always has a good reason for everything."

"Normally Lily, I'd agree but this is just too ridiculous." he was still grimacing. I checked my watch and cringed.

"Ugh, I have to go. I bet I'm already late; what a great way to start!" I began to walk back but then turned to shout to him, "I'll meet you soon alright! After classes tomorrow?" I couldn't even wait for a response. Without another word, I sprinted down the aisle towards the prefects carriage which I could hear, was already full.

As I entered the compartment slowly, trying not to make a scene I could hear James up in front addressing everyone. "...And just, er, if you have an issue covering your patrolling shift come talk to me or Lily and..." he looked up and spied me. "Oh, there she is now." He motioned over to where I stood and immediately everyone turned to stare at me. I felt my cheeks burn in shame at being the last one to arrive. Not exactly the impression I had been going for.

I walked quickly over to where James was and stood next to him, facing all. "As I was saying--" he started in again and I interrupted. "I'm so sorry I'm late everyone, please excuse me. I had..um, business to attend to." I straightened my robes and began to speak. "But yes as James said, just come talk to one of us and I'm sure we can find another prefect more than willing to trade. Compromises are allowed." I pulled out a small scrap of paper I had written on earlier in the summer after receiving my letter. It detailed everything Dumbledore had asked me to address. "Also, there will be an earlier curfew this year so don't let any of the students try to convince you that they didn't know. More details will be discussed at the welcome back feast."

I looked up at them all and continued, "In addition, a winter formal will be held in mid December." At this most, if not all the girls in the room gasped in excitement and looked at each other. I couldn't say as much for the boys. Even James looked slightly pained and he was usually up for any kind of social event. "Most of the teachers will be decorating but if you have a special talent for Charms let Professor Flitwick know. I know they'd appreciate the help. Again, I'll give out more details as the date nears. But for now, carry on with your patrols and remember that we're role models." I heard a snort from the back and saw Amos Diggory looking at James skeptically. James narrowed his eyes and I spoke faster to prevent any kind of scuffle.

"We'll all have a great year. Thank you and have a nice evening!" Immediately everyone started talking and gathering their things. I saw Remus walk up to James in his casual manner.

"Not bad Prongs, I almost believed that you wanted to follow the rules this year," he grinned and dodged James' hand easily as he tried to hit him on the shoulder.

James scowled. "I wish everyone would lay off; it's not like I asked for this job. I'm doing the best I can!" He glared over in Diggory's direction. Remus laughed and patted him on the shoulder.

"Don't worry about it. We all know Diggory's still sore that he wasn't given your position. Not to mention last year's quidditch match." they both chuckled. James looked over in my direction and saw that I was lingering nearby.

"Hey," he said approaching me. I stuffed the paper I had been holding in my pocket quickly as if that was all I needed to do before leaving.

"Hi," I said not meeting his eyes. I tucked a red lock of hair behind my ear distractedly. I searched outside as if I was looking for someone just so I wouldn't have to look right at James.

Remus made to leave and said to James, "I'll meet you in a few," he smiled knowingly and exited. I blushed and cursed Remus for leaving me alone, nice as he was.

_Oh no you don't, _ I thought and walked out of the room just as I felt the train slowing down. "Wait," I heard James say from right behind me and I closed my eyes. He just wouldn't let me be, would he?

"Yes?" I said somewhat curtly and just decided to stay where I was. He would follow me anyways and we would be getting off the train soon.

"I just...wanted to say congratulations. I don't think I got to before really." What was with him? It would be so much easier if he were still just as immature as he had been two years ago. I had to admit, even last year he had gotten better.

"Thanks, that's...nice of you." He blinked and beamed brightly. I gave him a quick smile and then turned around just as the doors to all the compartments opened. We had come to a complete stop right outside the little village of Hogsmeade. I went down the steps quickly ahead of all the other students so I could lead them; I heard James right behind me as usual. I sighed, guessing I would just have to get used to it.

The village of Hogsmeade was deathly quiet as dusk settled over the town. Dim streetlights lined the deserted roads and the cool autumn air hugged my body. My eyes swept over the area and came to rest on a huge looming figure carrying a lantern in his right hand. I heard a few first years gasp in wonder and I smiled, approaching the giant shape. "Hello Hagrid," I said looking at the gamekeeper.

He smiled down at me, his eyes crinkling at the sides. "Well 'Ello Lily. Have a nice holiday?" he said in his gruff voice.

"Wonderful," I replied, and then turned to the first years. "Alright, you lot are going to go with Hagrid here in these boats." I waved my hand over to where they all were, bobbing in the black lake. The younger students all looked both frightened and apprehensive. I nodded my head towards Hagrid. "He'll take it from here. Good luck!" I waved to the group in front of me and made my way down to where the horseless carriages were waiting for the returning students. I glanced back to see James guiding a confused first year over to where the rest of them stood. I widened my eyes in surprised. Maybe Dumbledore knew what he was doing...._Odd, _I thought shaking my head and continuing forward.

I barely noticed a pack of seventh year Slytherins congregating next to the train until I had past them. "Filthy mudblood!" I heard one of them hiss.

I turned back only to come face to face with the Carrows, Avery, and some jerk named Mulciber. I opened my mouth about to retort that after uttering an offensive term they had earned themselves detention their first week back. However right then James swooped out of nowhere and took hold of my arm, standing between myself and the others.

He narrowed his eyes menacingly at the all four of them and retorted, "You guys look a little lost. A bit confused now that your head git Malfoy is no longer here?" They looked at him in digust but said nothing. "Shame. I'm not sure how you're going to cope. Come on Lily." He pulled me behind him which I allowed for a good ten feet before wriggling out of his grip.

"Let go of me James!" He immediately did so and looked slightly shamed, his defiant look gone.

"I'm sorry, I just---I was trying to help!" he held up his hands.

I brushed my hair out of my eyes and frowned. "Well I can handle myself thank you. I was doing just fine." I kept walking and didn't hear him follow.

Suddenly I heard him right next to me and he sounded....angry? "Can I ask you something?" he said looking at me with blazing eyes.

"What?" I said, my bravado dissipating a bit. His tone of voice had caught me off guard. I had never heard him speak this way to me.

He opened his mouth to speak and just then we heard laughing up ahead.

"Prongs! What are you doing? Come on we're gonna be late!" Sirius, Remus, Tonks, and Peter were up ahead laughing. I noticed that they all were observing myself and James with different expressions: Sirius was grinning at James mischieviously while Tonks and Remus were smiling contently. Peter was appraising James in admiration. I suddenly felt like a spotlight was shining brightly on me.

We both approached them looking perturbed by our "exchange" although we hadn't really gotten to say much at all. Tonks hopped up into the carriage and plopped down on a seat.

"Well come on!" Sirius followed behind along with Remus and Peter. James hadn't moved.

"Well um..." I turned around to see a very empty platform and bit my lip. "Well I was _supposed _ to wait for Cath and the others." I didn't feel like mentioning Severus' name to this lot. I knew they would immediately start in on him and after everything, I didn't think I'd be able to take it.

"Oh, they went on ahead already," Tonks said in an apologetic tone.

"Besides, I think this is the last carriage Lily. You might as well," Remus said holding out his hand for me to take. I obliged lifting myself up to the top and turned to look back down at James. He looked as if he was trying very hard not to say anything. He jumped up and took a seat next to Peter without another word and we were off.

The rickety ride had us all bouncing in our seats. Tonks almost sprawled into the middle of the carriage after going over a particular deep pothole but Sirius took hold of her shoulder.

"Thanks," she muttered and then looked to the rest of us. "Hey guys, I meant to show you this at the station but I was paranoid my mum was still lurking around. Check it out." She screwed up her eyes in concentration and in another moment her light brown hair was a deep shade of violet. It made her eyes pop out even more.

Everyone murmured in approval and Sirius slapped his hand on his knee. "Man that's dead useful. Prongs do you have any idea how handy this will be to us this year? Tonks has the ability to turn herself into anyone...Professor McGonagall even!"

"No way!" cried Tonks.

"Yeah Sirius, don't take advantage of your cousin like that," Remus commented.

James shrugged. "I don't know Padfoot..." I thought I saw him glance swiftly at me in the corner of my eye. I kept my face neutral pretending like I didn't see or hear him.

We went over another large ditch in the road and were all jostled momentarily. "Do any of you know who the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher is going to be?" Peter asked anxiously and looked around at everyone.

"No idea," I replied and the rest shook their heads as well.

"I heard this rumor it was a vampire," Tonks said wrinkling her nose in disbelief.

Sirius burst out laughing. "Who said that?"

"Cath heard it from some Hufflepuff, I don't even know," she said waving the thought away. "All I know is it better be someone with a little more joy than Professor Podmore. I love Defense, but he had me bored to tears."

"Well I guess we'll find out soon enough," replied James nodding to the castle that was now looming over us as we pulled up. We were all silent for a moment, glad to be back home I think. Well I was. Maybe the rest were just hungry or tired. The carriage came to a complete stop and I was the first to step off followed by Tonks.

"Hi," she said brightly walking next to me, the boys lingering behind us to talk. I saw James whisper something to Sirius looking stern and then looked over at me. I turned away from them and smiled back at Tonks, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and giving her a quick side hug. "Hi, how are you?" I bit my lip. "Sorry I haven't talked to you yet, things have already been so crazy and the school year hasn't even started." She smiled serenely.

"Don't worry about it Lily, I understand." She was so mellow, it was a nice vacation almost from Cath who could be so exuberant at times. "Besides, Head Girl, wow. That's a lot of responsibility."

"I know," I replied sighing. I was already exhausted from it all. Excited still yes, but exhausted. I was quiet for a second but my ears perked up when I heard the guys talking.

"....Said there were two more disappearances including that Macdonald girl's father," I heard James saying quietly to the others.

"Mary?" Sirius said sounding upset. "That's...terrible."

I whipped around to face them and spoke up. "Do you mean what the Daily Prophet said in its last issue?" They nodded solemnly. I looked glumly back at all four of them. "I heard that too. You don't think--?"

"We're not likely to find out now. We should just keep heading to the Great Hall. Maybe Dumbledore will explain more," Remus said coming to walk next to myself and Tonks. The six of us trudged up the path until we heard the sounds of dining students; silverware tinkling as it hit plates and chattering voices of all ages. We picked up our pace, hurrying through the Entrance Hall which was shining bright as ever and into the Great Hall.

No one noticed our entrance except for a few students I saw look our way including Eleanor and Cath who smiled broadly from the Ravenclaw table and Severus, who observed me with dark eyes entering with James and the others, from the Slytherin side.

We all hurried down to the Gryffindor table where an empty space had been left luckily. I sat down across from Remus, Peter, and Sirius quickly; James and Tonks took a seat on either side of me. "Oh, we missed the sorting," Tonks said disappointed.

"Forget sorting, give me food!" he said and immediately the plates in front of us were filled with with an assortment of meats and vegetables. We all looked at each other in astonishment.

"Nice work Padfoot," Remus said approvingly and we all began to feast on the meal in front of us. Nearly Headless Nick floated over to where we were seated and looked suspiciously at us all.

"Nice of you to finally join us," he said hovering right in the middle of our table immediately making our food cold. We all groaned simultaneously.

"Nick! D'ya mind?" Sirius said, his mouth full. I was strongly reminded of Petunia's boyfriend who had come over for dinner this past summer. He too had surprised me by leaving the table when he was done eating everything else in sight.

"So sorry for interrupting your _lively _ habits but I'll have you know that Dumbledore is going to give an important notice and you could have very well missed it!" Sirius rolled his eyes over to me and Tonks who had to keep from laughing by ducking her head down into her mashed potatoes.

"Thanks so much Nick but I'm kind of here to get away from my mum; I don't need you playing the role for me," James said earning him a few laughs from students nearby listening in. He grinned over at them and I found it was easier to remember him as he was in his fifth year. Looking over to confirm his cleverness at everyone else. It drove me mad. I rolled my eyes noticeably and took another bite of turkey.

"Ahem," we heard Dumbledore clear his throat at the head of the magnificent hall and everyone was immediately silent, watching him closely. He smiled at us, his blue eyes sparkling down at everyone. He lifted his hands in a welcoming gesture and began to speak. "Welcome new and old students. I am so pleased to have you all back here at Hogwarts starting another term. As we do every year, Quidditch try outs will be held within a few weeks of school starting back up. You can go to the Quidditch captain of each house for more details." His smile disappeared slightly as he continued. "On a much more serious note, I'd like to announce that this year, the curfew will be an hour earlier---" Students all began speaking at once in hushed tones.

Remus turned to look back at us in a 'see?' sort of way, shrugging his shoulders. I looked back to Dumbledore waiting for him to elaborate, sure that he would. Although truth be told, we all had a feeling we knew what this was about.

As the talking died down Dumbledore continued with his speech, "---This is due to higher security at Hogwarts. I'm sure many of you have been reading the Daily Prophet this summer and we as a school are going to take the necessary precautions. There is nothing to fear here at Hogwarts, we are merely appeasing parents." He smiled again. "However, for the third years and up I urge you to take great precautions when off the grounds." He cleared his throat and turned to look at the table of teachers behind him. Stepping down from his podium he gestured to the man sitting to McGonagall's left.

"I'd like you to help me in welcoming Professor Gideon Prewett as this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," the man stood up and everyone clapped politely. He was medium height with red hair a similar color to mine. He smiled charmingly and nodded before sitting down again.

"He looks quite young," I said as I clapped and Tonks nodded in agreement.

Dumbledore placed a hand on the front of his chest and said, "It is with great sorrow that I announce to you all that Professor Binns, our History of Magic teacher, died in his sleep this past June." Everyone looked around at each other, their faces blank. As sad as it was to hear that a former professor of mine was gone I was glad he hadn't become one of the mysterious disappearances that kept showing up in our papers. Plus, he _had been _pretty old...I could only hope to die the same way.

"His replacement will be the father of one of our former Head Boys, Mr. Abraxas Malfoy." Dumbledore clapped although not, I noticed, as enthusiastic as he had with Prewett. The Slytherin table clapped twice as hard as they had before while the rest of us clapped out of obligation, shooting each other looks as we did so. I looked to my right to see James shaking his head at the other three boys who looked rather fierce.

"Oh man," I heard Tonks say quietly beside me.

Dumbledore did not have to wait long; most of the clapping ended abruptly. I observed "Professor" Malfoy with what I hoped were unbiased eyes. He was extremely tall, his white blonde hair smoothed back and he gazed at us all with piercing grey eyes and a facial expression I could only describe as a sneer. He sat back down next to Professor Sinistra and looked away, bored already. I wondered why he would have ever taken this job...he didn't exactly look like the kid-friendly type.

"To end on a happy note, I'd like to congratulate this year's Head Boy and Girl, Mr. James Potter and Ms. Lily Evans, respectively," he said and a few students chuckled. The Gryffindor table burst into a loud round of applause and a few whistles, much louder than the rest of the school. We looked to each other and after a moment's hesitation stood up and smiled at everyone. I caught Severus' expression although he raised his hands and clapped, indicating it was only to me. I shot him a smile and sat back down quickly, cheeks flushing.

"Whoo hoo!" Tonks cried grabbing my shoulders and shaking them. Remus, Sirius, and Peter all took their turn patting James on the back a few times.

"You are dismissed. I hope you all have a most amazing night's sleep," Dumbledore smiled and we all rose out of our seats, the Great Hall once more very loud.

I stood up on one of the benches so the Gryffindors could all see me; I was shorter than I was willing to admit. "First years come with us," I said pointing to myself and James who's expression brightened at the term _us_.

We filed out of the Great Hall, James by my side and the rest of our friends behind. We managed to all fit somehow onto a moving staircase which brought us up to our floor. I noticed a first year leaning too far over the edge and Remus immediately pulled him back. "Whoa there, careful. That would be bad," he said smiling a little. The young boy looked up at his enormous height in awe,his mouth gaping open and Tonks chuckled.

The staircase had come to a stop and everyone clambered to get off. The four boys followed behind me and Tonks made to do the same but was halted. "Ugh," she grunted looking down and realizing her foot had sunk into the sinking step. "Of course," she said so expectantly I had to smile. Sirius and Remus both took hold of each arm and pulled her out as if they had done it several times, which honestly wouldn't have surprised me.

We finally made it to the Fat Lady's portrait and I gave her the password, loud for all the students to hear. "Starlight," I said confidently and the portrait hole swung open. Everyone pushed their way through and I felt my heart soar as my eyes came to rest on the familiar scarlet room.

I took a deep breath, relaxing at last. This was where I belonged, I thought to myself taking a seat in a sofa by the fire. Most all the students had jogged up to the dormitories, eager to collapse into the comfortable beds but the seventh years (and Tonks of course) lingered in the common room exchanging summer tales. It was a quiet night, everyone worn out from the long and exciting day back.

I saw Remus, Peter, and Sirius bid goodnight to James and head up to their rooms, Sirius flicking the back of Peter's head as he bounded up and the others following.

I closed my eyes, content at last for a few peaceful minutes when I realized it had become very quiet indeed. Opening my eyes, I looked around to see a deserted room; everyone must have retired to bed. I sat up and saw that not _everyone _had gone to bed. Of course James had stayed. He was looking at me rather peculiar, like he wanted to say something.

I let out a breath of air and stared right back at him. "Hey...James?" I asked. It sounded strange sometimes for me to not call him Potter but that habit had ceased last year. Besides, he didn't call me Evans anymore so it seemed like a fair trade.

"Yes?" he said sounding much quieter than normal.

I bit my bottom lip and looked at him as if I were trying to decipher some sort of code. "What were you going to say to me? Before we got on the carriage I mean." I wondered if he even remembered.

He blinked, apparently taken aback by this question. "Oh...er...it doesn't matter." He replied and all of a sudden seemed like he was in a hurry to get to bed. "Night Lily," he said before hopping up the stairs to the dormitories.

I stared up at him, very confused. "Night," I said deftly and made my way to my own bed.

As I collapsed into the scarlet sheets I looked out the window, the silver moon spilling light across the grounds. In the distance, the Forbidden Forest was still, with only the occasional hoot of an owl to lull me to sleep.


End file.
